


RIBS

by ErrorCode



Category: K-pop, TOMORROW X TOGETHER | TXT (Korea Band)
Genre: Abuse of Authority, Freedom, Graffiti, High School, Mentions of Suicide, Other, Rebellion, Rebels, Teenagers, Underage Drinking, mentions of abuse, theyre just rambunctious teens, trigger warning
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-15
Updated: 2020-08-18
Packaged: 2021-03-05 00:34:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 9,669
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25285453
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ErrorCode/pseuds/ErrorCode
Summary: Choi Yeonjun, a average high school senior is facing the end of his childhood. As he grows, his friends grow closer to him, but his family isn't accepting of them. Soon, he finds himself as the stranger to his family, and runs away with his friends. He begins to go through more struggles, partaking in rebellious actions with his friends, nearly affecting his relationships and future multiple times.When times get rough, he's left to choose between the standards of his society, or between his newfound family, and home.A story about family and rebellion.
Comments: 9
Kudos: 11





	1. 1 - HUMBLE

**Author's Note:**

> This series is slightly based on real life experiences with my family and friends. It's an over-dramatized version of what high school may be like to many people, and what you can do when you believe in yourself and your friends. Society changes when you change society.
> 
> YES THIS HAS BEEN POSTED ON WATTPAD. IT IS MY WRITING.

The dismissal bell rang through the halls, and the students packed their items up, ushering through the hallways towards the doorways. Choi Yeonjun was hoping for just a few more moments to study before leaving. His finals were approaching quickly, and he needed every minute he could get in order to ace them. His parents made that clear to him, pressing him with high standards and expectations. He wasn’t one that liked letting people down, especially his family, even if they do that to him every day.

A pair of hands were set on the desk in front of him, and he looked up to meet the eyes of Soobin, a friend of his who shared the same second period class. They have been friends since elementary school, and went everywhere together up until recently, when Yeonjun began his preparations for graduation. 

“Hey there!” Soobin said with a toothy grin, the smile spreading to Yeonjun, who returned a soft tilt back. “Overheard Kai and Beomgyu talking about going out tonight, you coming with? We’re gonna go hit up that abandoned train station by the salon on Sixth,” he said quietly, leaning closer, “They raided the craft store of all their spray paints, we can have some fun with that.”

Yeonjun cracked a smile, and a quiet chuckle came out, looking away for a few seconds to make up his mind. “Sure, count me in. It’s better than sitting at home all day with my dad lecturing me on chemistry,” his reply was met with a happy, beaming smile. 

“Neat! We can all go grab lunch in an hour and make our way there, sound good?” questioned Soobin. Yeonjun nodded, pulling his phone out to message his parents.   
“If my parents ask you, say we were at a study hall,” Yeonjun murmured, eyes not coming off the phone. 

“Don’t worry, I’ll let them know!” Soobin turned on his heel, heading out. Yeonjun took that as his cue to head out as well, packing the books up and slinging his bag over his shoulder. The sound of his shoes on the cheap tiling echoed through the room, and he flicked the lights out, pulling the door closed behind him.

High school hallways are a free-for-all. Yeonjun was quick to adapt to this, it’s like a madhouse. There’s a lot about high school that he learned quickly as a freshman. Bathrooms are off-limits except during class time, if you go in during class swaps or before and after school, be prepared for the weird kids. As for the classrooms, those are crawling with preppy kids. The theater? You’re better off being sacrificed to the stoners in the parking lot than to spend a moment with the kids in this theater class. The band room is the forbidden area. Many dare to enter, and very few come out. The hallways are the only area that's open to the vast majority… And that’s the issue.  
Pushing past the masses of weebs, bullies, jocks, and that one gross couple always sucking at each others’ faces every passing moment of the day, he finally reached the school exit. Even outside was crawling with cliques, some large, and some with just two people. 

Yeonjun didn’t fit in with any group, he was what the people would call the average student. He wasn’t a goth, or a jock. He wasn’t preppy, wasn’t a downer. He was just Yeonjun, plain old Yeonjun. He had many acquaintances in many places, but very few friends. He wasn’t known for anything great, and was never approached by anyone.  
Unlike other kids who would mooch rides off their friends, or ones who drove themselves, he didn’t enjoy the mechanical route home. Living nearby was a benefit to Yeonjun, giving him time to enjoy himself before placing himself into his home where he can barely breathe. It was a fifteen minute walk to his house, twenty if he had any grievances with his parents. The sun never shined too hot, and the winters never got too cold to cause him to ride a car. He always had an umbrella, and never batted an eye in the snow.   
There were the rare occasions where he would grab a snack from the gas station across the road, and eat it on his trip home. The woman running the place knew him since he was a toddler, and used to babysit him and Soobin. She was an elderly woman, in her mid-sixties, with no family. Yeonjun always called her Mama, and would talk to her about home struggles. She was the only comfort he had in his life, and that store was his safe haven from the world.

He looked at the store from the sidewalk, and decided it would be best to get home to let his parents know he was leaving. He still had to get out of uniform, and get a spare change of clothes in case of paint getting on him. Growing up with strict parents, he’s become the ultimate liar, painting gray lies. He would be telling his parents he was going to study with Soobin, which he is going with Soobin, but the location is wrong. His parents wouldn’t approve of his friendship with Kai, Beomgyu, and Taehyun. They see the new youth as troublesome, and don’t think they’re good for Yeonjun.  
He just couldn’t wait to leave this godforsaken town, and live his own life, even if it meant disowning his family for his own happiness. This town was enough for him, but he wanted more. He wanted freedom from it all.

The door to his house creaked as he pushed it open. The halls were lit up, and the house smelled of the lemongrass and lavender candles his mother had in the living room. He went up the stairs to his room, pushing the door open. His haven, his bedroom, the only privacy he gets in this house. He tossed his bag on his bed, pulling out his phone to check the time. Half an hour until the meeting time. Yeonjun hurried himself down the stairs, and into the kitchen, meeting his parents sitting at the table. 

“Mom, I’m going to study hall with Soobin tonight, might not get home until later, I’ll need the spare key,” Yeonjun said, grabbing a glass and filling it with water. His mother looked over and gave a nod. Setting the glass on the counter, he made his way to his room to prepare. 

His main goal was to get away with this, so he didn’t have to deal with the repercussions. He dumped out his books, hiding them under his blankets, and replacing them with ragged clothes. He pulled the zipper shut on his backpack, and made his way out, grabbing the spare key from the hanger and pocketing it.


	2. 2 - Diner

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> FYI, there is BTS mentions here.
> 
> Again, this story is based on personal experiences. Things will be slightly more realistic than other high school AUs. This will be one of my longer stories.

The rattling of the rusting train cars rang through the area as Yeonjun made his way towards the diner. It wasn’t the best looking, and wasn’t very popular with tourists or locals, but this place had some of the best food Yeonjun had ever eaten. He pulled the door open, a tough feat with the rusted hinges. The metal creaked, and the bell on the inside rang, signaling eyes to be placed on him. He walked up to the counter and ordered some fries and a burger. He felt a pair of hands touch his shoulders, and a light, joyful voice. 

“Glad you could make it!” Kai said, his smile brighter than the sunlight shining through the windows. 

“You’re joking, right? You think I’d miss a day like this?” Yeonjun’s reply earned a playful punch to the arm.

The girl at the counter slid the tray across the counter to Yeonjun, and he followed Kai to the others. They were being loud as ever, laughing over girls and delinquent activities. He took a seat next to Soobin, and offered the fries to everyone. Beomgyu took one and dipped it in the cup of ice cream he was slowly snacking on. 

“Taehyun, you wanna tell Yeonjun that joke again?” Soobin wheezed between his laughter, reaching over for a fry. 

Taehyun took a moment to regain himself, wiping some tears from his eyes, taking a breath and beginning.

“Well, we were writing poetry in Mr. Ryu’s class today, and I mean, aren’t limericks poetry?” He could barely keep himself together.

“So this genius decided, ‘Since Mr. Ryu’s a very conservative man, I’ll write him a limerick,’” continued Kai, now joining in on the stealing of the fries.

Taehyun cackled a little bit, “And so I did! I wrote the dirtiest limerick I possibly could come up with. He has no choice but to pass me, because I did the assignment!”

“His reaction to it was priceless!” Kai was face down in his arms, body shaking from laughter. 

Beomgyu joined in on the laughter, copying Kai’s gesture, fist hitting the table a few times. 

Yeonjun cracked a smile, laughing at the story and taking a bite of his burger. He remembers Mr. Ryu, and his crazy obsession with tradition. It’s nice to see other people are messing with him too. 

“Glad you guys are keeping up the tradition. It was a baton passed down to me by those ‘boy scouts,’” Yeonjun pointed out, pressing a finger to the table. 

“You’re talking about Jungkook and those guys? The ones who got arrested their senior year for that tunnel incident?” Soobin looked at him, curious. 

Yeonjun was the only person who had met the self-proclaimed ‘boy scouts.’ He was a freshman when they were seniors, and they adopted him into their little group. They developed a popular image in the town, and became legends at not only the school, but to the youth. That was the turning point for Yeonjun’s parents, and when the boy scouts were arrested, he was taken out of school for the rest of the year. 

“Yeah, they did way more than just that, though,” he began, peaking the interest of the others. They all sat up and looked expectantly at him, eager to listen to stories of their encounters.

“The leader was a fearless, super smart guy named Namjoon. He was one of the honors society kids, and he was one of those rappers you find online. Well, the origin of the boy scouts was back in their freshman year. Namjoon was filming a music video and ran into three guys named Taehyung, Jin, and Yoongi. They immediately made friends with each other, and Yoongi and Namjoon bonded over their rap life. Yoongi introduced Hoseok to the group about a week or something afterwards, and the three became the head of the boy scouts,” Yeonjun laid the scenario out, the origins, “Jin met a guy named Jimin through theater, and they all met Jungkook during detention. They all began hanging out after school, and that was when they started calling themselves the boy scouts.”

Beomgyu and Taehyun’s eyes were wide, leaning in for more. Soobin was just curious which story would be told this time, and Kai, who had never heard the stories from Yeonjun had stopped moving from laughter, and was now attentive as ever.

“They didn’t originally mean to become delinquents, they just wanted to have fun. The first year was easygoing, they’d just go for joyrides, biking, or pulling petty pranks on teachers and students. Their first major break was in their 10th grade year, when they broke into a skating rink and just went roller skating. They enjoyed the thrill of it, and began to do more,” to the others, these were their predecessors. They were the heirs to their thrones.

“I wish I knew all the stories, honestly, but I just know what they used to tell me during lunch. That mural in the parking garage, down on Seaside? That was painted by Taehyung and Hoseok. The pink ribbons wrapped around all the streetlights on West Gregoria? That was Jin and Jimin. You know that one hula hoop thats stuck over that streetlight on Main? That was Jungkook. There are a bunch more around the town, but I don't remember where… Namjoon and Yoongi are the reason that karaoke place in West Gregoria banned rap music,” Yeonjun snickered a little bit. 

“They were the staple delinquents for us, their heirs. This is our last year as a full group, we gotta make it count,” Taehyun pointed out, nudging Beomgyu.

“Yeah,” Beomgyu nodded, looking at Taehyun, then to Yeonjun, “Yeonjun’s leaving us in less than a year, we gotta make our names known!”

“Since they were called the boy scouts, what would we be called? Like, what’s gonna be our tag? Our symbol?” Kai looked towards Soobin, the head of the group.

“Well, how about something that represents us as a whole. We aren’t the boy scouts… Something unique..” Soobin said quietly, losing himself in thought. 

Yeonjun quickly rose his brows, hands placed on the table. He had an idea. “How about Tomorrow and Together? Because we’re always together, even if it’s not physical.”

Kai and Beomgyu tilted their heads. “TAT?” Beomgyu questioned, not sold on the abbreviation. 

“What if we do Tomorrow by Together? That way we can use an ‘x’ for the ‘by’ and it’ll be TXT,” Soobin suggested, earning some nods from the others. Yeonjun agreed, it was a neat name. 

“TXT it is! We’re gonna be Tomorrow by Together from now on.”


	3. 3 - Fumes

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alstroemeria - Symbolizing the many twists and turns of long-lasting friendships. These flowers can last many years, indirectly symbolizing a long and happy life.

Kai spilled the drink all over Yeonjun’s lap as they were cleaning off the table. It was a very stark feeling, but earned laughter from the five teens. Yeonjun took that as the chance to go change into his other set of clothes before they went walking towards the station. He packed away his shirt and pants, tugging on a pair of ragged jeans and an old college sweatshirt from his dad. He zipped the bag up and made his way out to the parking lot with the others.

“Sorry about those pants, Yeonjun,” Kai said, nudging him, “but I think I prefer Yeonjun looking like a bum in a basement.”

Yeonjun laughed and nudged the younger back, “Nah, I was gonna change anyways. We’re ready to head out, yeah?”

Soobin raised his arms and pointed forwards, bursting out, “Let’s go!”

It took about half an hour to walk to the abandoned train station, and the group was still running strong. They forced open the doors to the sales booth and Beomgyu set his backpack down, the cans of paint clattering against each other. 

“Let’s get to work, guys!” Kai shouted, opening the bag and snagging a few bright colored cans of paint. Taehyun grabbed a few cans and branched off with Kai to paint the bathrooms. Soobin grabbed a bunch of shades of blue, and started on the walls and windows of the ticket booth. Beomgyu nudged Yeonjun and urged him to grab some cans from the bag. 

“You know there’s more in Kai’s bag right? We needed a place to store them, Kai and Taehyun have the rest,” Beomgyu said, picking out his signature pinks and whites, heading towards the front of the station. 

On outings like this, Beomgyu served as the lookout, being the more observant and fast-acting out of the bunch. Yeonjun picked up a few cans and headed for the back of the building, the large wall in the back. The entire station was beginning to smell like the fumes of the paints, but with how open the building was, it aired out as quickly as they came. 

He began spraying the walls down, widely coating an area in white to be a better canvas than bricks. He worked intently, eyes fixed on the wall and paint, all the sounds of the other guys faded away. Reds, golds, blacks, all began to come together… His vision manifesting into physical form. In the corner, it was labeled TXT, the new group’s name. He figured it was appropriate. 

Yeonjun pulled his phone out and snapped a photo of the picture, proud of his work. Tossing the cans aside, he headed to check on the others. Soobin, naturally, had painted a pure blue mural of a city street, mixing in some white and black abstract shapes. It was impressive, to say the least, and the color choice set a very odd but familiar feeling. Seeing it was almost like a liminal image, a place he can vaguely remember but has never been. 

“Yeonjun! Any pointers here? I’m out of ideas, and almost out of paint,” Soobin said, turning to face the other. 

“Tag it, show some pride in your work. I tagged mine, TXT… The new name, it fits really well as a graffiti tag,” He suggested, placing his hands in his sweatshirt pockets. 

“You’re a genius, senior,” Soobin gave a playful wink and got to work on the tag. 

“I’m gonna go check on the other guys, I can’t imagine the monstrosities that Kai and Taehyun created,” Yeonjun cracked, heading for the bathroom stalls.

Bright is an understatement for the paintings. Blinding is the correct term. Arrays of bright greens, yellows, and blues littered the room, abstract and very graffiti-like. It wasn’t one image, each wall was a different style, different array, and definitely different themes. The plain wall across from the stalls was painted predominantly blue with a large yellow and white tag reading TXT. Seems they had the same idea, using the new name. Kai was still spraying away at one of the stall doors, while Taehyun cleaned up the cans they had used up. 

“Wow, looks like summer puked in here,” Yeonjun said, placing a hand on Taehyun’s head and ruffling his hair. 

“It’s called abstract, baby,” Taehyun teased, swatting at the elder’s hand, “it’s art.”

“I know, I know,” He held his hand up defensively, “the colors really suit you guys. I think it’s neat.”

Kai poked his head over at the sound and smiled, waving a hand, “Yeonjun, you like our masterpiece?”  
“I love it!” Yeonjun replied in a loud tone, gesturing around, “Totally screams Kai and Tae!”

He spent a few minutes shooting the breeze with the two before checking up on Beomgyu outside. He walked towards the platform and was taken aback by the sight. Instead of the abstract, or graffiti imagery, he was met with an array of pinks and purples, fashioned to look like flowers in a snowy day. Beomgyu was texting away on his phone, cans neatly placed beside him. He seemed happy, a smile never leaving his face or faltering for even a moment. 

Yeonjun took a seat next to him, laying his head against Beomgyu’s shoulder, “Thanks for helping set up a night like this, y’know.”

“Aw, don’t get all sappy with me, Yeonjun, you know I love hanging out with you,” Beomgyu smiled, gesturing towards the picture, “You know what flowers those are, right?”

“No, I didn’t do my flower studies unlike you,” Yeonjun snickered, looking at the flowers. They sure were pretty though…

“They’re called alstroemerias, they’re a symbol of long-lasting friendship, happiness, and life. It’s not just a pretty picture of them… It’s so much more when you recognize the symbolism,” Beomgyu’s attention drifted back to his phone, “There’s so much that we can’t put into words, but we all know what it is.”

“Seeing yours really puts mine to shame…” Yeonjun mumbled, not negatively, but just to set his mood.

“I doubt that, I’ve seen some of your works before,” Beomgyu nudged him. 

The street lights started to flicker and turn on, and not even a few moments passed before the crickets began to chirp, and the cicadas buzzed in the low evening sun. Yeonjun sat with Beomgyu in comforting silence for just a few minutes before heading back in, urging Beomgyu to follow.

Beomgyu pocketed his phone and followed Yeonjun over to the back wall, looking over it. Whereas everyone created the bright and colorful masterpieces, Yeonjun’s stood out like a Banksy. It was an image of a two-story white house engulfed in flames. There was something oddly familiar of this image, and it tugged at both of their stomachs the longer they looked at it. Yeonjun had a thing for realism, and it usually resulted in interesting outcomes such as this.

“Woah, holy shit!” Soobin yelled, looking at the image, scaring both Beomgyu and Yeonjun.

“Yeah, that’s what I was thinking. Why does it look so familiar though?” Kai wondered, walking a little closer, “Even the tag doesn’t look out of place- What is it?”

Yeonjun looked over at Taehyun who had fallen silent, staring at the picture. 

“Yeonjun, that’s my house,” Taehyun took his eyes off the picture, and locked them on Yeonjun. 

Yeonjun rose a brow, and Soobin spoke up, “Yeonjun’s never even seen your house before, Taehyun, it might just be a coincidence.”

“It totally is, I was just painting whatever was coming to mind,” Yeonjun laughed a little, “It just looks a little bit like your house, right? There’s a lot of houses like this, after all.”

“Yeah, you're right, we don't have that attic window there,” Taehyun laughed along with Yeonjun, the odd feeling dissipating from the group.

“Well, the street lights are on, so we better get heading home before Yeonjun’s parents scalp him for being out past 9.” Soobin joked, earning a gentle nudge from Yeonjun. 

“They wouldn’t do that, it needs to be past 10, then I’m dead,” he played along, the others laughing, ribs hurting from the paint fumes and previous laughter from the earlier parts of the day.

“God, this laughing is gonna give me abs, I swear,” Taehyun exclaimed, leaning on Kai for support. 

“Anyways, let’s get out of here,” Beomgyu said, shouldering a backpack and heading for the platform. 


	4. 4 - Blackened

The walk home wasn’t bad, aside from the stars starting to reveal themselves, and the sunlight hiding away. This was usually a bad sign for Yeonjun, and his superstitions, believing in creatures that lurk in the night. He didn’t enjoy the stories his parents shared with him as a kid, even though he knew they were just to make sure he came home early every day. 

The group had dispersed about halfway through the walk, each guy heading to their respective home base. Yeonjun lived the furthest away, leaving him to walk alone. Those superstitions began plaguing him, whispering into his head, but he ignored them. There’d be no four-armed homeless woman coming to snatch him up to eat, there’d be no giant demon birds there to swoop him away. It was just him, his phone, and the street.

His senses peaked when he spotted a guy dressed in all black, hood pulled up, and a mask over his face. He felt an odd, but familiar feeling about this guy, but didn’t dare test it. In the city, there’s one unspoken rule; never stare at a stranger. He took a glance and looked back at his phone. The stranger did the same, and went about minding his own business, walking towards the place Yeonjun came from. 

He stopped at the gas station across the road from the school, and changed back into his regular clothes, grabbing a box of sour candy and heading home. His thoughts were fixed on the diner, the spray painting, the entire ordeal. He wants to relive it again.

It only took one knock on the door for his dad to unlock it. 

“Enjoy your day?” His dad asked in his signature monotone voice, locking the door behind Yeonjun. Yeonjun replied with a nod, and a small smile.

“I think I’m gonna ace that test, dad,” he said, heading up the stairs to his room. Once he closed his bedroom door, he quickly put the clothes in his dirty laundry basket, and pulled his books out from under the sheets. His focus now was to actually study, to actually do his right tasks.

He passed out somewhere between two hours of studying, and texting Soobin. He woke up to his alarm, his phone screen on, and a bunch of wrinkled notes and dog-eared textbook pages. He wasn’t feeling too tired, though his legs were a little sore from the walking the night before. 

He begrudgingly got up and dressed, putting his books into his backpack, and checking the time. To his dismay, he was late, but oddly enough, his own parents didn’t even try to wake him up. He went downstairs to grab some food, and was shocked to find the kitchen empty. 

“Mom? Dad? I’m late!” He called out, checking his phone again. Soobin had texted the group chat. They were going to meet up for another outing, and maybe hit up the train station again for some more painting. 

The time tag caught Yeonjun’s attention. It was 9 in the morning, on a Saturday. Both of his parents were out of town for the weekend on a business trip. It was the rare occasion that Yeonjun had actual freedom. 

He replied, “Totally down for it! Maybe we can do some things tonight and tomorrow too? My parents aren’t gonna be back until Monday evening.”

He was expecting some reactions, but not for everyone to spam the chat with party emojis. He took it as an agreement. 

“See you guys at noon? Gonna pick you guys up in the car,” Soobin replied. 

Soobin’s mom was an old coworker of Yeonjun’s parents, and an absolute saint. She let Soobin drive the family’s truck occasionally, and usually funded some of the peaceful outings, such as movie-going, skating, or beach days. She never told a thing to his parents about the others, and usually covered up for them when there were slip-ups. 

Yeonjun made himself some food, spending the time planning a new picture. He got some inspiration from the stories from the boy scouts, and watched a few of the music videos by Namjoon. It highlighted some of the fun adventures, showing clips of the city, of their endeavors and rebellion. This could be that weekend, the weekend that changes his life.

He quickly pulled out his phone, and sent a text to the group.

“We should do a midnight run too, since my parents aren’t gonna be home. No one’s ever out past 10 anyways,” he sent the message, not really expecting an immediate reply.

Within two minutes, Beomgyu replied with a “YES!” and Kai said “Don’t fall asleep on us then, oldie.”

It seemed they were down to terrorise the town at night. Finally, it was his time to live.

Finally, it was around 11:30, and he heard a truck pull into his driveway. The beep of the horn alerted him, and let him know it was Soobin here to grab him. He grabbed his backpack and got in, sitting in the passenger seat of the truck. Joyriding sounded great right now, he knew they’d probably kill some time before picking everyone else up.

They cruised along the suburban streets, enjoying the moment by yelling at unsuspecting pedestrians. When the suburbs ended, and the city streets began to reveal themselves, they cranked the music on blast, and belted out to the tunes. They killed about an hour, just riding the seaside streets, jamming out to the CDs Soobin owned since 2008. 

When they pulled into Beomgyu’s driveway, he was waiting on the front deck with Kai, both of them ready for another round. They quickly bounced to their feet and climbed into the back of the truck, tossing their bags through the back window and into the seats. Now all that was left was to pick up Taehyun, who didn’t live too far from Beomgyu. It took about five minutes to reach Taehyun’s house, and they honked, the two in the back yelling for Taehyun. This was their trademark, being loud, being free. 

“Hey!” Taehyun quickly left the house, running to the bed of the truck, repeating the same process the others did, tossing his bag into the back seat, and sitting in the bed. Soobin turned the music up, and they were on their way. The five of them cracked jokes at the top of their voices, earning looks from strangers they passed by on the road. Yeonjun forgot about the stress of school, but he remembers the last thing he heard from Jungkook before he graduated.

He remembered that night, it was the night of the graduation. Yeonjun was there to support Jungkook despite his parents disapproval. Jungkook had the others there, and for the first time, Yeonjun met the boy scouts without risking getting in trouble. Jungkook was overwhelmed by the six, and pulled Yeonjun aside. He placed a hand on his shoulder, and with a toothy grin, said to him, “Remember to enjoy your school life, because it’s the last bit of youth and fun you’ll ever really have. Defy your parents or whatever, it’ll make you live and learn, Yeonnie.”

He smiled at the memory, looking out the window, at the passing city buildings in the distance. They were close already, the drive definitely being faster than the walk, at least for Yeonjun.

They parked behind the station, and made their way up and into the building, bags filled with paint and snacks. They pushed the creaking doors open, releasing the smell of the paint from the previous night. 

“Did we close the door last night?” Taehyun asked, looking back at it as everyone else walked forward. 

“I’m sure one of us did, I don’t remember,” Kai said, heading for the bathroom to finish that glorious piece he and Beomgyu were working on. 

“Don’t think too much on it, they probably sent an officer here or something. It isn't a privately owned property, so it isn’t illegal,” Yeonjun assured Taehyun, opening Soobin’s backpack to get more paint. 

Soobin walked his way to the ticket booth for round two of ‘defacing capitalism’ as he likes to describe it. Taehyun went back to his flower fields, to possibly paint more beautiful works. 

Yeonjun made his way towards the back wall, and froze in place. The mural of the burning house had been painted over with black lettering. The phrase “Can you see me?” written nearly ten times, all over the painting. He felt off about this, his stomach churned, and he went to find the others.

He pushed the door to the men’s restroom open, and found it empty, the walls still colored and intact with Kai and Beomgyu’s art. He heard the two in the next room over, in the women’s restroom, laughing and listening to music on their bluetooth speaker. He went to leave but something caught the corner of his eye. He saw a black mass from underneath the stalls, and he pushed the door open.

His eyes widened to see Min Yoongi, one of the older boy scouts asleep on the floor in there. He nudged him with his foot, trying to wake him up. 

“Yoongi? Yoongi, wake up,” He insisted, continuing the nudging. Yoongi let out a groan and opened his eyes, looking up at Yeonjun. 

“... Jungkook was right, you guys were coming back, huh?” Yoongi said in a low, tired voice. 

“What do you mean?” Yeonjun asked, his brows tilting in confusion.

“Jungkook came here last night but couldn’t find you guys, he said he saw you in here,” Yoongi explained, gesturing around, “he means in the art. I think I walked by you last night, I don’t really know.”

“Jungkook came here?” Yeonjun asked again, crossing his arms.

“Well, he is the one who showed you this place, he just wanted to see what you guys did with it,” Yoongi snickered a little bit, “Though… about that one mural, I didn’t feel good about that one. Jungkook must’ve done the writing on it, I didn't get here until about half an hour after he texted me.”

“Yeonjun, who you talking to?” Beomgyu interrupted, opening the door of the stall.

“Hey! Privacy! This is a bathroom!” Yeonjun shouted, a smile forming, “Well, Beom, this is Yoongi, one of the boy scouts.”

Beomgyu’s eyes lit up, and he visibly got excited.

“You’re kidding, right?! Yoongi?! I love your music!” 

“Oh, thanks, I haven’t written many songs recently, been a little more busy with the guys, mostly trying to find Yeonjun here,” Yoongi gestured, “we just wanted a little reunion. I see you’ve made some new friends!”

“I’ve made a lot of new friends, they’re all inspired by you guys,” Yeonjun replied, gesturing to Beomgyu, “he’s a huge ‘fan’ of everyone.”

“I can see that, well, want me to invite the others, and we can all go grab some lunch? We’re all excited to see little Yeonjun after nearly four years, Jungkook will be stoked,” Yoongi said, already texting the others.

“Totally! I’m sure the guys will like the surprise, don’t you Beom?” Yeonjun questioned, looking at Beomgyu, who nodded.


	5. 5 - Tunnel

The afternoon was spent at the train station, the boy scouts working together to paint their own mural, a homage to their past. It had a different style for each of the seven, and was a mashup of the seven’s favorite schemes. Yeonjun painted another scene, of a beautiful forest with a campfire and lightning bugs lighting the starry sky. This one made him feel happy, and perhaps after graduation, he might be able to finally achieve memories like this. Now came the tough part, painting a silhouette.

He looked towards the wall, defaced with the writing, and tilted his head. Yeonjun turned quickly on his heel and ran outside, to the side of the building where the boy scouts were touching up their painting. He tapped Jungkook on the shoulder, gesturing inside.

“I need you to help me out in there,” Yeonjun smiled, thumb pointing towards the door.

“Sure, I’ll help,” Jungkook gave his signature goofy grin, setting the paint down and following Yeonjun in. “So, what’s up?”

“I need you to make a silhouette of me right here,” He pointed to the middle of the burning house, “I think it’ll fit.”

“You sure?” Jungkook asked, picking up a can of black paint, “Alright, then get against the wall.”

Yeonjun did so, closing his eyes and holding his breath while the older outlined him. 

“Done!” Jungkook exclaimed, stepping back, Yeonjun following in suit, and looking. 

“Thanks, Kookie,” Yeonjun said, taking the can from the older and beginning to carefully fill in the outline.

“I know exactly what you’re doing here, Yeonjun,” Jungkook said lowly, looking at the mural, “I think it’s the perfect representation for you.”

“Actually, I was just painting something random and someone put the writing here,” Yeonjun replied with a quiet laugh, pausing for a moment, before continuing the painting.

“Really? It was like this when I came last night, that’s odd,” He tilted his head, looking at it, “Y’know, that house looks awfully familiar.”

“Actually, the others said the exact same thing, maybe I accidentally created a liminal image?” Yeonjun joked, finishing his job, “There… I think it works perfectly.”

“I agree,” Jungkook nodded.

The sun was still blazing, and the fumes were high. The twelve boys were getting antsy and hungry, and decided to call it a day. The five youth piled into the truck with Soobin and Taehyun sitting in the front, leaving Kai, Beomgyu, and Yeonjun in the back. The boy scouts clambered into Jin’s truck, Namjoon and Jin in the front, and everyone else raising hell in the back.

“Hey!” Hoseok shouted towards the boys, “Let’s go meet up at Steak ‘n Shake!”

“Alright! See you there,” Kai shouted back, Beomgyu relaying the message to Soobin. 

The boy scouts spun out their tires on the way out, bringing up grass and dust, leaving the youth cheering them on before following in suit. It didn't take but fifteen minutes to reach the Steak ‘n Shake, which was empty as ever. Surrounded by nicer places to eat, it was just left to watch others get business. 

The twelve made their way inside, the boy scouts beginning to merge and mingle with the younger ones. Hoseok and Jin seemed to be the social center of the boy scouts, and Yoongi was more like Yeonjun, staying out, but observational. They both lingered towards the back as the group chatted amongst themselves.

“You know, I remember what Jungkook told you when we saw you at his graduation,” Yoongi quietly spoke, looking at Yeonjun, “Hope you remember it too, right?”

“I never forgot a single word, and I’ve been living by it,” Yeonjun smiled softly towards the older, who returned that gentle smile.

“Good, because I sucked up to my parents too much in school, I ended up feeling caged. Jungkook ripped me from my shell when he joined the group,” Yoongi pulled his hat over his eyes, probably a little ashamed to speak of himself that way. Yeonjun nudged him softly, laughing.

“Well, you guys brought out my confidence too, and the confidence of the others. I don’t know where I’d be without you guys,” he replied in a wistful tone, looking towards the group.

“I’d have been dead long ago without Namjoon and Jin, they found me on that day, and saved me,” Yoongi said quietly, “I owe them everything.”

“I’m sure they just cherish your friendship over anything you owe them, Yoongi,” Yeonjun reassured, locking eyes with Hoseok, who gave him a beaming grin, “Don’t you guys have nicknames? Hoseok is like ‘sunshine’ or something?”

“Actually, Hoseok is J-Hope, but we just call him Hobi. Namjoon is Joon, and I’m Suga,” he snickered a little, “Hoseok called me that because I’m pale. Taehyung goes by V, for victory. Jungkook likes the name Kookie, but it isn't his real nickname. Jin’s name is short, and he prefers to just go by his name, but will always introduce himself as ‘worldwide handsome’ to girls and guys he finds cute. Jimin? We call him Mochi from time to time.”

“Mochi? Cute,” Yeonjun cracked a bigger smile.

“Do you guys have nicknames for each other?” Yoongi asked, looking towards the others.

“Actually, we don’t. I guess it never crossed our minds,” Yeonjun mumbled, “Well, we also just recently found our group name too.”

“Oh?” Jimin turned to face Yeonjun, curiosity peaked.

“Hey! Let’s order,” Namjoon called, looking towards the three, who turned their attention to the menu.

After a hectic ordering session which might’ve resulted in two resignations from work, they finally got their food, and headed outside to eat.

“So, what name did you guys choose? We chose the ‘boy scouts’ because they’re youthful, right? And like doing cool things, like setting fires and such,” Hoseok said, munching down a fry.

“Tomorrow by together,” the younger five said in unison before laughing at each other.

“TXT, for short,” Taehyun elaborated, earning a soft clap from Jimin.

Taehyung looked up, eyes wide with happiness, “Wow, that’s an interesting name, isn’t it?”

“Well, it fits them, doesn’t it? It’s like they’ll be there tomorrow, together,” Jin gestured to the five, “They’ve clearly thought it through.”

“Actually it was an on the fly decision,” admitted Beomgyu, earning laughs from everyone.

“Hey, can you tell us a story?” Soobin asked, looking at the boy scouts. They looked around at each other, and then to Soobin. 

“Totally, which one do you wanna hear?” asked Namjoon, looking towards Yeonjun, then to Taehyun. 

“Tell us about the tunnel incident, we never got a clear story about it, no one was there,” Kai said, sipping his soda.

“Well, I guess Suga’s got the best place to start,” Namjoon gestured towards Yoongi, who looked up.

“I guess it’s a bit of a long story, are you sure you wanna hear it?” He asked, watching the five nod their heads. He smiled gently, and began.

“One day, I was laying at home, I was at wit’s end. I was in sophomore year, and I had no one. I was depressed, I was abused, I was caged. I just wanted to fly, and it killed me. My own dreams clipped my very wings, or so I thought. I met Taehyung through basketball, when he was working yearbook club. During the basketball photos, he asked me for my phone number, and I gave it to him. That was the beginning of our friendship,” the two met eyes and smiled to each other, “From there, I met Hoseok and Namjoon, and we shared a common interest in rap. The four of us met Jin and Jimin during a music festival, when they were rehearsing for their performance. We reigned school under the radar, pulling silent pranks and such, until we met Jungkook. Kookie brought out the best of us, and really taught us how to fly. Everyone but me.”

He looked down, fiddling around with a fry, “I was scared to fly away with my healed wings, I watched from afar as they soared above me, bonding. My parents clipped my wings once again in senior year, when they forced me to give up on my musical passion. That very night was almost the end of me. I was in that old hotel that burned down, listening to my final song, and setting blazes. Luckily, Namjoon and Jin happened to be there to get me out, and brought me to the hospital. When we arrived at the hospital, they were all there, happy to see me well and alive. My own parents refused to even pay me any attention after that.”

“And that night, Yoongi was set free, finally able to fly as a free man,” Jin said, smiling.

“As a celebration, we went to the highway, and to the tunnel. We blocked the road with Jin’s truck, and allowed our chaos to be unleashed. We climbed all over cars, painted windows, poured drinks all over windshields and drivers. We blasted music, yelled, and ran about like a bunch of wild monkeys,” Yoongi laughed, looking to Hoseok, “Then the police came. They ruined the fun, they beat us down one by one. We all ran for our sake, and laughed all the while doing it. V and Namjoon were the first to get caught, right outside the tunnel.”

“It was to buy you guys time to run and hide!” Taehyung defended himself.

“And Jin and Jungkook got arrested around the corner of Mable and Hartford. I was caught and beaten up pretty good on the stairwell leading to the cable tower down by Seaside. Hoseok and Jimin almost got away but were stopped and caught by security officers by the Tri-River Hotel. It was our way of sealing our names as the boy scouts, and ensuring that you guys wouldn’t forget us,” Yoongi finished, beaming eyes staring right towards him from the five.

“Wow, you guys are so cool!” Beomgyu sat forward nudging Taehyun, “Bet you a hundred that I’d be able to escape the cops before you.”

“You’re on!” Taehyun grinned, laughing.

Yeonjun felt a tug at his stomach. He could do it, defy his parents and escape. He could be like Yoongi and fly free right now, but he didn’t want to risk leaving his home behind. Yoongi could sense that Yeonjun was nervous about the entire defiance of his parents ordeal, and placed a hand gently on his shoulder.

“Hey, trust me, defying your parents is the best way to get the message across to them. If you're scared to disobey them, that's on them,” he whispered, reassuring Yeonjun.

“Thanks, Yoongi.”

“No problem.”


	6. 6 - Storm

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the late update. Work got super busy!

As the night grew dark, the twelve split back into their respective groups and bid farewell. After exchanging numbers, they all grew close. Soobin and Beomgyu chatted in the front seat of the truck, while Kai and Taehyun sang along to songs on the bluetooth speaker. The city was so beautiful at night, the ocean even more so. Yeonjun laid in the truck bed, watching the stars twinkle above. 

“Hey, dreamy, you getting sleepy?” Taehyun nudged Yeonjun with his foot.

Yeonjun looked over and smiled, “Nah, not at all. You know what we’re doing now?”

“We’re heading to my house, we’re gonna stay there for the night, watch some movies, y’know, sleepover things,” Taehyun smiled back, looking to Kai. 

“Yeah! Taehyun’s parents are also out of town, so we’ve got the house to ourselves,” Kai stated, changing the song from old school hip hop, to a soft lofi-hip hop.

The three finished the ride in silence, listening to the playlist, and watching the sky. They became clearer as they began to make their way into the suburbs, exposing new constellations.

The truck pulled to a stop, and fell quiet, signaling their arrival at the house. The two front doors opened, and Soobin and Taehyun came to the back. 

“Let’s go, it’s getting cold,” Beomgyu said, tugging at Taehyun’s leg jokingly. 

Taehyun laughed, sitting up. One by one, they climbed out of the truck’s back and headed to the house. Yeonjun looked at the house and felt another tug at his stomach. This didn’t feel right. His head was spinning, and white noise took over his hearing. His vision flashed red, only ceasing when Soobin patted his back.

“Let’s go, sleepy,” he laughed, nudging him towards the door.

Yeonjun nodded and headed towards the door, his unsure feeling slipping away once he walked through the doorway. Nothing too special about this house, it was a well-kept, average home. Two stories, three bedrooms, and average furniture. The living room was minimal, containing one side table with a lamp, a coffee table, a beige couch, and a TV. There were only a few photos scattered around the walls. 

It looked almost like what you’d expect from an office worker, which was what Taehyun’s dad’s profession was. Kai and Beomgyu hopped onto the couch fighting over the pillow, Taehyun laughing as he walked towards the closet to bring out some blankets and pillows.

“Guys, find a movie or something,” Taehyun called over his shoulder, instigating another playful fight between Kai and Beomgyu, resulting in Soobin snatching the remote and turning Netlfix on. 

“Let’s watch a comedy, I think it’s best for us, since Kai’s a scaredy cat!” Beomgyu teased, hair immediately meeting its doom as Kai retaliated by messing it up.

“I am not!” Kai defended.

“Yeonjun doesn’t really like horror movies,” Soobin said, looking through the comedy category.

“That one!” Taehyun said, prompting Soobin to stop on a TV series. 

Soobin smiled brightly, looking towards Yeonjun, “You ever see this show? It’s hysterical.”

“Never even heard of it, I rarely watch TV,” Yeonjun said, looking at the title. Apparently it’s a classic, as said by the description, ‘The Office.’

Taehyun snatched the remote from Soobin’s hand and pressed play, pulling Yeonjun’s sleeve, dragging him over to the couch. He gently shoved Yeonjun down and laughed.

“You’ll love it,” Taehyun promised Yeonjun, slumping his body next to the other. 

The night grew later, and they grew tired. Eventually, they got sick of sitting around, and Kai let out a dramatically loud yawn to announce his boredom. 

“We should do something else,” he stated boldly, as if everyone else wasn’t thinking the exact same thing.

“Like what?” Soobin looked towards Kai, who turned towards Taehyun.

“Don’t know, what do you think, Tae?” Kai asked, leaning against his side, earning a stifled laugh from Taehyun.

“Wanna make some food? I’m a little hungry,” he offered, groaning as he stretched out this legs. 

And they did, grilling up some burgers on the stove, and causing chaos and noise. Yeonjun secluded himself to the dining table, picking at some raspberries, taking a few to eat. His head had automatically droned the noise out, and all he heard was static. His vision seemed to blur, yet everything was clearly displayed in front of him. He felt in an odd state of confusion, like he was asleep without sleeping.

“Yeonjun!” He heard Taehyun call, clapping his hands in front of Yeonjun’s face.

“Oh- food?” Yeonjun looked over at everyone, who were making their plates.

“Yeah, you tired?” Taehyun looked concerned, grabbing a burger and handing the plate to Yeonjun.

“Yeah, a little bit, I didn’t sleep too well last night,” Yeonjun said, watching the others.

“Well, excitement does that to you,” Kai said, sitting at the table. 

“That’s true,” Yeonjun agreed, picking up the burger.

It was a solid half hour before the boys finished eating, and migrated back to the living room. Taehyun issued out blankets to everyone, and they made their own places to sleep on the floor. 

Yeonjun laid awake for an hour, staring at the ceiling. His mind once again wandering into the unknown, the sound coming back. The eerie, yet comforting sound of static. The room was bathed in the color red, from the paused show on the TV they had fallen asleep to. He felt a little off, superstitions starting to arise in his mind. Deja vu made a grand appearance the moment he heard Soobin murmur in his sleep.

Thunder roared outside, and rain battered the windows, wind threatening to rip off the roof shingles. The sounds of the storm was enough to put Yeonjun to sleep, lulling him with the rhythmic pattern of water on glass.


	7. 7 - Underground

Yeonjun found himself on the other side of a long bridge. His friends standing there, faces empty, blank. They paid no attention to him, as he stood on the edge. His graduation gown billowing in the breeze, a gust of wind knocking the cap off his head. He tried to call out for the group, but his voice was silent. The group turned, and stared right at Yeonjun as he lost his footing, and fell.

It went dark and silent, until Yeonjun saw a singular light appear. He walked closer to it, revealing his hometown, basked in white and black. The faces were nothing but blurs, and the sound was nothing more than muffled nonsense. He ran past people, shoving through the crowded city streets, until he reached Taehyun’s house. The once standing suburban house was now reduced to a pile of ash. The world began to crumble under his touch.

“GIVE ME BACK MY PANTS!”  
Yeonjun woke up with a startle, sunlight shining on his face from the blinds of the window across the room. He looked at his phone for the time, eleven in the morning. Kai was messing with Soobin, who seemed to have lost his pants at some point in the morning to the evil clutches of the younger. Beomgyu was kneeled over Taehyun, back moving as he giggled. Yeonjun craned his neck to peer over, and saw that Beomgyu had taken initiative to doodle on Taehyun’s face. 

“You misspelled ‘idiot,’” Yeonjun pointed out, using his finger to show Beomgyu he missed the second ‘i.’  
“Hah, whoops, thanks Yeonjun,” Beomgyu laughed, taking the marker and fixing it.   
“How long did you guys sleep?” Yeonjun asked, looking over at Kai and Soobin, who finally obtained his pants.

“I slept until Mr. Young and Handsome stole my pants,” Soobin said, pulling them over his legs, taking his pillow and hitting Kai with it.

Kai laughed, falling over from the unbalance. 

Taehyun groaned a little and sat up, Beomgyu scurrying backwards to avoid getting caught. He opened his eyes and looked at Yeonjun.   
“Morning, sleepy!” shouted Soobin, launching the pillow he was holding at Taehyun, who barely processed what happened.  
The five laughed a little as Taehyun let out a yawn.  
“I swear, Tae, you can sleep through the apocalypse and still not bat an eye,” Kai said, nudging Soobin, who laughed.   
“It’s a talent, really. A special form of meditation,” Taehyun joked, throwing the pillow back at Soobin, hitting Kai as well.

After sharing another few witty banters and laughs, the five decided to take a trip into town to get some hearty breakfast. Yeonjun sat in the back of the truck with Taehyun and Kai, listening to the 80’s rock blasting from the cabin. They sang along to the golds, and pointed out at random people on the sidewalks, yelling and laughing. No one batted an eye at the chaotic youth, knowing full well this may be the last time they get to do this.

At least, that’s only what the people thought. 

They pulled into a parking garage and made their way into a raggedy old building. The sign in the front of the building showed that it was a basement restaurant connected to some apartments. The inside looked like the 70’s had thrown up all over it, the cheesy wallpapers, green carpet, and cheap rainbow chandeliers. They followed the sign to the staircase, and made their way to the basement’s restaurant. The sign on the door read ‘The Underground’ and the open sign was flipped to show they were on time. They pushed open the wooden door, and it was a bit of a flash to the past. 

For a cheap breakfast restaurant and friendly hangout, it was pretty nice-looking. The walls were dark wood panels, with posters of many different rappers and rock musicians that were from the area. The flooring was a deep red carpet, with a few rugs placed by sofas and bookshelves. To the very far left was a small stage, used to host gigs for local bands and singers. There was a bar directly across, that was only used for dining, the alcohol having been removed. To the right was the dining area and lounge. 

They walked over towards the bar and each took a seat on the diner stools, Soobin reaching over and tapping the bell to alert the workers they had guests. The entire facility was empty aside from a college girl enjoying her coffee, working on what can be assumed was an essay. 

The door to the kitchen swung open, and there stood Hoseok wearing a brown smock, beaming. 

“I was wondering when you guys would get here!” He clapped his hands together, the door opening behind him.

Yoongi’s head peered over Hoseok’s shoulder, and he nodded in greeting towards the others before vanishing back into the kitchen.

“How’d you know we were coming?” Beomgyu asked, leaning over the bar counter. 

“Oh! Taehyun sent me a text this morning asking what we had in stock today,” Hoseok replied, tapping his pen on the counter. 

The door swung open, and the other boy scouts came out, wearing the same brown smock, all except Jin, who was wearing a blue apron.

“You guys work here?!” Kai asked, joining Beomgyu leaning over the counter.

“Work here? We OWN this place!” Jin said, placing his hands on his hips.

“You own this place? What made you guys wanna open a restaurant?” Taehyun asked, becoming the third to lean over the counter, Jin reaching over and tugging at his cheek.

“I like cooking, and we wanted a place that we could actually call our own. What’s more ‘us’ than a chill hangout area?” Jin answered, letting go of Taehyun’s cheek and letting out a soft laugh.

“Jin proposed the idea to us a while ago and we all decided it was a great idea! All except Yoongi. He wasn’t the biggest fan of it at first,” Namjoon said, gesturing to Yoongi.

Yoongi nodded a little bit, “Well, I was more concerned about music and such, and I wanted to do something for locals.”

“And Jin didn’t like the idea of mixing music with a diner setting, so we couldn't come to a conclusion until Taehyung found this place for us,” Jimin said, arms crossing over his chest, looking towards Taehyung. 

“And it came with a stage, so that was a bonus for Yoongi. We decided to make a little hangout roost for everyone to enjoy,” Taehyung gestured around. 

“That room through that door actually has a video game lounge, Jungkook and Taehyung like gaming,” Hoseok pointed towards a set of wooden double doors.

“Sweet!” Kai and Taehyun exclaimed, eyes lighting up.

“We also got book donations for our library through that door, there’s also a piano in there,” Yoongi pointed towards a smaller door that was clearly much newer than the others.

“This place is like Heaven!” Beomgyu sighed dreamily, Namjoon laughing in reply. 

“Anyways, you guys want something to eat? Jin’s got the best cooking you’ll probably ever eat!” Hoseok asked, holding his little notepad up.

“Yeah! I’m starving,” Yeonjun said, looking up at the chalkboard menu.

They served practically anything you could think of, from seafood to breakfast. They even had an entire menu dedicated to ice cream flavors. Yeonjun had never seen such variety in a restaurant before, even in diners. 

“You guys really went all out, didn’t you?” Yeonjun pointed out, Yoongi raising a brow with amusement.

“Well, Jin made the menu, most of us can’t actually cook,” he said, the entire group laughing quietly from the comment.

“And I like a challenge. Cooking the same thing over and over can be boring so, I decided, I gotta appeal to everyone!” Jin explained, his confidence bursting into the hearts of the others.

The younger boys placed their orders, and the boy scouts disbanded back to their posts. The youth chatted with each other, mostly about the decor and atmosphere of the building they were in.

“Hey, Namjoon,” Taehyun waved him over.

“Yeah?” He asked, walking over to speak with Taehyun.

“Do you own the apartments upstairs too?” Taehyun asked, gesturing to the ceiling.

“Yeah, we do! I inherited the building from an old family friend,” Namjoon said with a smile. Taehyun gestured for him to lean in so he could whisper, and he did so. 

Yeonjun watched as Namjoon and Taehyun exchanged nods and whispers, ending with Namjoon giving him a thumbs up before retreating towards the office, next to the library.

“What was that about?” Soobin asked Taehyun, who smiled a little bit.

“Oh, you know, just things,” He answered with a sly smile, eyes locking onto Yeonjun. He felt a strange, uplifting surge in his stomach as he met Taehyun’s gaze.

“Just things.”


End file.
